But the time has come for some good music.
Last night I went for a concert. It was quite possibly the antithesis to the Maiden concert in Bangalore. It was in a seedy little bar, and there were like 20 people there. The band that we went to see, Scissors for Lefty, was pretty damn good though. They're getting a bit of buzz, and have signed to Rough Trade Records in the UK, which is the illustrious label of The Strokes, The Arcade Fire, and the band that launched a thousand bands, the late, great Libertines. They're from San Francisco, but have a healthy dose of anglophile dance-punk or neo-new-wave or whatever - the antithesis to the mope-rock one sees on the charts (on the rare occasions when rock music is actually on the charts). On top of tight solid playing and vocals that have been described as "flirty" they have real charisma - especially the front man. In an inebriated state, I declared my approval to him after their all-too-short set. I wouldn't say they're stupendous, but they're fun, and they're great live. Lot of potential.
Scissors for Lefty - Ghetto Ways
Scissors for Lefty - Next to Argyle
[Ghetto Ways Video]
Arctic Monkeys have charisma of a different kind. A Molotov cocktail of shyness, anger, sarcasm and sheer wit. Their latest single is a blistering and furious drum-and-guitar assault, with Alex Turner's street poetry guiding the way. He seems to mention Avril Lavigne. Or at least, he says "we can't take our eyes off the t-shirt and ties combination." Which is sort of the same thing. (Avril, meanwhile, has chucked her "punk" look in order to steal some poor girl's boyfriend. I guess, Like Nelly Furtado, she'll soon join The Pussycat Dolls, Fergie and Christina Aguilera in the wild world of skank-pop. Women's Lib is alive and well.)
I'd be interested to hear Perakath's comments about the drumming on 'Brianstorm'. Quite extraordinary for indie music. One techno-loving friend thought it was a drum machine.
Arctic Monkeys - Brianstorm
(Yes that's right, Brian, not Brain.)
[Watch the Video]
Here's Avril from the Age of Ties:
And here's a pic of Avril now. Hmmm. Maybe all is not lost. Wow.
Where was I?
Ah yes.
Elvis Perkins is a complete change of pace. He is the son of Anthony "Psycho" Perkins, who died of AIDS when Elvis was a kid. His mother died on one of the hijacked planes on September 11th 2001.
So he's a somber guy, okay?
This song just grabbed me with its sweet simple sorrow. But it's not about his own losses. It's poetic and strange. And he has a voice.
Elvis Perkins - While You Were Sleeping
